My client was given electric shocks and forced to sign papers: Advocate

Mysuru: Advocate K.B. Natesh, representing M.R. Rajesh in the Pandavapura presumed murder case, has alleged that the Police tortured his client, administered electric shocks and forced him to sign documents to extract a confession.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, Natesh said Rajesh had consistently maintained his innocence, but his claims were initially not taken seriously.

“My client is innocent. He repeatedly maintained that he had not committed the murder, but I initially did not take his claim seriously, as accused persons often deny the charges against them. I later secured bail for him from the High Court,” he said.

Rajesh was arrested solely because he had lent his mobile phone to Manju on the day she went missing, Natesh alleged.

“The Police claimed that a woman who was alive had been murdered. Rajesh told me that he was tortured, given electric shocks and forced to sign papers prepared by the Police,” he said.

Natesh said he was shocked when he learnt that Manju, who had been presumed murdered, had visited her father’s house in Pandavapura and left.

“I went to Nagamangala, made enquiries and with the help of an autorickshaw driver, traced her and handed her over to the Bindiganavile  Police,” he said.

He added that a complaint had been lodged at the Pandavapura Police Station against Manju’s father, Nagaraju, who had accused Rajesh of murder and the witnesses Ananthapadmanabha and Gurukumar.

“The then Inspector Prabhakar, who arrested Rajesh and filed the chargesheet, has since retired. We will also submit a complaint to the SP seeking action against  him,” Natesh added.